'Loud pipes save lives' and 'the louder it is the faster it is' are all phrases you’ve probably heard before, but for a lot of people – particularly the non-riding public – loud exhausts prove to be obnoxious. Which camp do you find yourself in?
I'm totally against pipes without baffles or "plugs" on the street.
There can be too much noise.... leads to unsafe situations.
If you got to have loud pipes, get a garage and enjoy them there with the doors shut.
Safety training works better than loud pipes to save lives.
I'm totally with you Ex Tex. Another manifestation of the look at me, me, me syndrome. I live in a river valley that is on the way to the coast. On weekends we get the rolling thunder of hundreds of Hogs on their way to the next burger/beer stop. It gets really old. Why make an already noisy world louder?
I am an advocate of louder pipes. The stock pipe on the 2014 CBR500R was wayyyyyyyyyyy too quiet especially in heavy traffic near Seattle. Almost hit on a nearly daily basis. I put a Leo Vince slip-on and I can see people looking around for me now. Plus hi-viz yellow Scorpion helmet and hi-viz Joe Rocket jacket help too.
I feel the same way. I almost got run over 3 times in 2 weeks. I got the same Leo Vinci GP Corsa Slip on and dont have the baffle in.
Offtopic, I see black soot stains near the muffler clamp and along the bottom of the muffler. Like maybe wet soot drained down along the exhaust pipe. Have you noticed the same? or did I do something wrong while installing it? I can also smell gas in my garage if I rev it.
I live 200 yards off a rural road, but when noise from passing Harleys rattle the windows it's too loud. You can hear them coming and going a mile away.
I agree with kMitch54....... I swapped my stock 2013 exhaust for a LeoVince GP just recently because of the risk of drivers not being aware of me and when my neighbour asked me whether my bike was an electric bike!!!! The new exhaust is NOT very loud but loud enough.
Stock is loud enough. Being actively aware of one's surroundings is much better protection than hoping someone texting in a car with a loud stereo might hear your exhaust, wake up and realize you're there. In the words of Reverend Horton Heat, ain't gonna happen. The only things loud exhausts do are disturb the peace, annoy people and cast us all in a bad light. For what it's worth, the Hurt report found modified bikes were over represented in crashes.
There's stock, loud, and then douchebag levels. It's the douchebag levels that bother me and the other two I'm okay with. I've contacted the police on a couple of "DB" level bikes in my neighborhood. The Leo Vance slip-ons are illegal in California iirc.
The stock sound on a CBR500R 2015 sounds like you are riding a sewing machine - so simply cannot agree with stock is fine.
You don't buy a Mustang and expect it to sound like a kitten purring, a bike needs a good look and a good sound. If not then you just need to buy a twist and go scooter..... :surprise:
The stock sound on a CBR500R 2015 sounds like you are riding a sewing machine - so simply cannot agree with stock is fine.
You don't buy a Mustang and expect it to sound like a kitten purring, a bike needs a good look and a good sound. If not then you just need to buy a twist and go scooter..... :surprise:
.
Well, the very first thing I said when I fired her up was, "I love this! It sounds like a frickin' sewing machine!" I swear to God. That's what I said.
I love how quiet it is. Quiet has a quality all it's own. The 500 in any trim is the antithesis of a loud, obnoxious machine. Even Harleys are more or less quiet from the factory. Aftermarket stuff is required to make almost any bike loud.
Even if loud pipes don't cause accidents, they don't prevent them either. All they do is make people hate you. They may even be illegal in your area. If people put loud pipes on, that's their business. But I think they should just be honest and say, "I want to be as loud as possible- just because."
This is just my 2 cents. Your mileage may vary. I totally respect your opinion. But I think loud pipes give all motorcyclists a bad name.
That's a subjective opinion though. Personally, when my wife comes home on the stock CB I can hear her from down the street. Which is also anecdotal evidence but for me this bike in stock form is loud enough. Maybe you need a hearing assessment
And honestly if you want a good sounding bike you're gonna have to step up to an I4 or v-twin.
Gotta disagree again - you can get a good sound out of any engine (including my sons 50cc Moped) with the right exhaust. You don't need to have a huge engine to do it.
If loud pipes don't help make your presence known to others then there is no need for truck and train air horns, police and ambulance sirens and smoke detector alarms (to name a few) be as loud as they are either.
Some engines sound like **** when under-muffled (e.g. Harley twins.) I can't help that but it won't stop me from seeking a more voluminous level somewhere between OE sound levels dictated by bureaucratic suits in Brussels (especially Euro 4 of late...) or Washington and the douchebags running unmuffled big-inch hit-and-miss antique engines. Somewhere in that spectrum is attention-getting, presence-announcing sound levels that are not otherwise obnoxious. That's where I seek to be.
There's a difference between horns and sirens, which are used in emergency situations, and a constant high level racket that really serves no practical purpose. If you drive around with your horn blaring all the time, you'll get a ticket. If people like loud pipes, that's fine. But they should be honest with themselves and admit they like it just because it's loud and they don't care about how it affects other people.
If I ever see scientific evidence that loud pipes make people safer, I'll admit they work for that purpose. All evidence I've seen to date says that's not true.
But I'll probably never appreciate it when someone tears butt down my street and wakes up my kids at 2am.
It is interesting to follow the back & forth on this topic. I am in the quiet is better group, but I certainly have noticed that one of the most common mods people do is to change out the muffler be it for weight, looks or sound. OK! No worries, to each his own. Please just try to keep it legal & not over the top obnoxious. We have enough detractors on the road as is. Thanks. Rubber side down mates.
These days it's just as likely to be a modified pickup truck or a sportscar riding up behind the cager as it is a moto. I think to a point people really enjoy a certain sound of their bikes, after some decibel point though, it is unnatural to actually enjoy it. I imagine it's annoying to alot of people. It's unnaturally loud and seems to summon something primeval in the body's response to it. Danger. I also agree with others here that the best protection on the road is an awareness of the surroundings, maintaining your bubble, staying visible, keeping your eyes in the rear view mirror as well as ahead, e.g. riding safely.
I love my '16 F the exhaust is just right for long distance and early work starts.
My '15 Enfield GT has what can only be described as minimal silencing through a classic pipe and it sounds fantastic. Loud, yes, but in a slow thumpy way.
I do find a lot of modern high revving bikes are horrible sounding when load and revved hard. I loved the carbon can on a Ducati I had at tick over but it was deafening at speed. Harley's are the same to me, great at tickover, horrible at speed ( well what they call speed)
I used to think that when filtering through traffic, it was best to be heard so that other drivers were aware of your presence. However, I tried this, and on several occasions I found it caused more problems. Vehicles would suddenly change direction and speed, leaving you guessing what the **** they were doing. Going back to a quitter pipe, let me pass by without incident. Sure they may be startled, but once your past your safe.
i run a 2017 bike with the Yoshimura R77. I have tried this with and without the baffles. I chose to leave them in for one reason. The power was more linear all the way through, but with the baffles oust, the power was more woolly.
I will also mention that the 2016 bike onwards have more restrictions in the collectors ( Down pipes)
and therefore less noise than previous models.
My guess is, the majority of those who prefer quiet exhausts are more willing to wear hi-vis, and conversely those who like a noisy exhaust wouldn't be seen wearing hi-vis.
Anyone disagree?
I have a slip on, but DB killer and baffle are in. A noisy exhaust is a safety feature but, like full beam, shouldn't annoy ppl.
I returned from Asia this week. Electric scooters are getting popular over there, and, OMG, they sneak up on you. They are probably 0.5% of the scooters there but nearly every near miss I had was with one. You just can't hear them.
Maybe you have a point. Personally I do mostly wear the ugly hi-viz stuff, helmet & riding suit. I suppose it is my conseccion to "safety". I do have an all black riding pants + jacket for times I don't want to appear too moto centric. However, I love how quiet the stock bike is.
I have a screaming demon exhaust on my 2014 CBR500R, it's definitely louder than the stock exhaust but not obnoxiously loud.
I was behind a Yamaha MT07 the other day, I think it's a F something 07 in America, and I was 20 metres behind it and couldn't hear my own bike, it was way too loud. Was trying to see what exhaust it was but it came out at the front of the rear tyre, he may not have even had a bloody exhaust on it.
I think loud is good so people around you know there is a bike near them, but so loud that people can here you from a mile away is not necessary and socially irresponsible.
I do not want my bike obnoxiously loud, but I do always run aftermarket over stock. Though I do keep the baffles in on my aftermarket pipe if it's too loud. Not on my 500R though, it sounds fine with the IXIL with no baffles. My other 2 bikes I do keep them in. I want not only other cars to know I am there, but animals too. I live in a very animal dense farm area, so you never know what you may encounter here. Bear, Deer, Fox, Bobcat, a stray goat, wild turkeys, you name it. Case in point, I was riding 3 weeks ago on my CBR600 and a deer came out onto the shoulder area, I revved my throttle and it immediately looked up and took off back into the woods before I came upon it. I call that a win.
A very broad and uneducated reply, as there must be H E L L of a lot of morons out there then, a lot of them motor sport professionals who advocate loud pipes on bikes for traffic awareness.
Calling someone a moron because they simply have a differing opinion to yours is... well... moronic :grin:
I'm another one that likes the fact my bike is so quiet. I've had loud bikes before, and eventually you just find the noise tiring; particularly on long trips. It might be fun for a short blast, but try doing several hundred miles and the increase to your fatigue levels is noticeable. Not to mention the damage potential for your hearing.
A loud pipe would be a waste of money for me as I wear earplugs and do all I can to quiet any wind noise. I will admit I do like the sound of some sportbikes with pipes but not on mine anymore. Some bikes just sound like crap with aftermarket pipes. But to each his own. Ride on.
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